Fact Check Shows Human Activity, Not Natural Coal Evaporation, Drives Kalimantan Fires
Experts explain that fires need ignition, oxygen and fuel, and while dry peat provides fuel, ignition typically comes from human activities such as land-clearing burns. Satellite data show hotspots concentrated in peatlands across West, Central, South and East Kalimantan. The Ministry of Forestry has sanctioned several concession companies, and police have arrested dozens of suspects linked to the blazes.
Interviews with specialists reveal that Kalimantan’s forest fires arise from human-induced ignition rather than any natural coal evaporation process. Dry season conditions lower groundwater, exposing peat to oxygen, but a spark—often from agricultural burning—is required to start a fire. Geospatial mapping and Himawari satellite images pinpoint most hotspots in peatlands of West, Central, South and East Kalimantan.
Researchers cite El Niño-driven drought as a factor that dries vegetation and peat, making them highly flammable. The Ministry of Forestry has imposed sanctions on six concession firms, including PT MPK and PT WEL, and frozen a permit for one company. Police investigations have led to arrests of multiple individuals across the four provinces.
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